Attendance Policy

Excused absences

A student is absent for the entire day if he or she misses more than one half of the school
day. All absences are recorded as unexcused until the student returns and provides
documentation concerning the reason for the absence.
TEACHERS must mark a student UNEXCUSED if they are not in their room for instruction.
Only the attendance clerk may change the absence to excused.

There are specific reasons for excusing an absence. LNMS follows the district guidelines.

Requests that fall outside the guidelines of district policy require the discretion of the
principal; however, all excused absences outside the list provided should offer educational
opportunities that are age appropriate for the student.

For purposes of excused absences concerning family illness or death, there are no specific
guidelines provided for the definition of “immediate family”; however, the generally accepted
definition includes the student’s mother, father, siblings, stepmother, stepfather, stepsiblings,
and other relatives who live in the student’s home.

If a student begins to demonstrate a pattern of absences for medical reasons, the school
may require a physician’s note for any future absences. Best practices indicate that
students who are absent for three or more consecutive days or who request more than
five non-consecutive absences for medical reasons should be required to bring in a doctor’s
note. Illness can also be verified by the school nurse. This practice is encouraged.

Students who are granted an excused absence must be allowed a reasonable time to make
up any missed work. At least one day must be allowed for each excused absence.

Because so many of the school’s functions depend on accurate attendance, all excuse
notes should be received within 48 hours of the student’s return to school. The reason for
the absence should be changed (if necessary) in the computer the day it is received.

Not all absences are excused. Merely providing a note is not enough to excuse an
absence. The reason provided on the note must be considered before granting the
excused absence.

Phone calls and emails are not acceptable communications for excusing an absence.
Hand-written notes must be provided to excuse an absence.

Take Your Child to Work Day is recognized by OCPS as an excused absence. It should not
be counted against a student for perfect attendance purposes.

Any student whose parent/legal guardian is an active member of the United States Armed
Forces, set for deployment, on leave, or has returned from deployment, may be excused up
to five days per OCPS Policy, provided all assignments for missing dates are completed and
returned within the allotted time.

Suspensions

Days during a suspension are considered excused.

Suspended students are allowed to make up missed school work according to the
guidelines provided under the Excused Absences section.

Tardiness

Students are tardy if they are not in class at the beginning of the school day.

Tardies TO SCHOOL are all recorded electronically. Tradiness to school will be excused only with a doctor's note or other legal documentation. Hand-written notes are not accepted to excuse a tardiness.

Students can be counted as tardy for each individual period, but for truancypurposes, only tardy to school at the beginning of the day is considered.

Students may not be suspended out of school for excessive tardiness TO SCHOOL.

For truancy purposes, five tardies to school or five early departures, equal one unexcused absence.
However, this is for referral purposes, and the electronic record is not to be
altered. Actual presence or absence on campus must be accurately reflected in the
electronic record.

Early Departures

Students who have attended more than half a school day and are released from school prior to
the closing of the school day shall be considered an early departure. Early departures are either
excused or unexcused. Students may or may not be excused for the following reasons:

Excused

Medical appointments

Counseling

Legal appointments

Funeral of family member or closely related friend (school may request proof)

Family emergency (school may determine if valid)

Unexcused

For convenience of parent

Personal reasons

Shopping trips

Early Release

Early departure of any student during the last hour of the school day is Strongly DiscouragedTruancy and Habitual Truancy

Truant means one who is subject to compulsory school attendance, but who is absent
from school with or without a justifiable consent from a parent or legal guardian.

Truancy means the student has had at least five unexcused absences within a calendar
month or 10 unexcused absences, within a 90-calendar-day period, or a combination of
unexcused absences and tardies equivalent to the above numbers.

Habitual Truancy means the student has 15 unexcused absences within 90 calendar days
with or without the knowledge or justifiable consent of the child’s parent or legal guardian,
is subject to compulsory school attendance and, is not exempt under any other
exemptions specified by law or the rules of the State Board of Education.

Religious Absences

There are a number of religious holidays which qualify as excused absences. In order to
qualify as an excused absence, the religious tenets must forbid secular activities on
that day, and the parents must have declared that their student is observing the holidays of
that specific religion. Religious absences are treated like pre-arranged absences, and must
be requested in writing at least five days prior. Religious holidays which fit the criteria defined by the FDOE: